With summer coming to a close, we look ahead to a great fall full of activities. First, coming up at the beginning of September, our local recruiter Rachel Satoh is hosting a happy hour with a couple of other recruiter friends. She has extended the invitation for SDPCA members to join in the fun. Later in the month, we have a trip scheduled to the Oceanside night market, and don’t forget our big bonfire at Shelter Island to round out the month of events. In addition to mingling with other RPCVs and enjoying a fun evening on the bay, you’ll have the chance to vote on which project(s) we should choose for this round of International Support Fund giving.

It’s not too early to start thinking about the annual holiday party, too! Be sure to save the date for Saturday, December 8, and let us know if you have any neat international items you’d like to donate to our silent auction—funds raised go to support our work in our local community and abroad.

Join us for a fun evening at the Oceanside Sunset Market! The market features up to 200 merchants and spans four city blocks. Enjoy hot food from around the world, gourmet goodies and desserts, eclectic shopping and live entertainment. We’ll walk, chat, shop, listen to music, and eat! The Sunset Market is located in the heart of Downtown Oceanside at the corner of Pier View Way and South Tremont Streets.

Meet at the Oceanside Civic Center/Library at the 330 North Coast Highway near Pier View.

Evening at the Bay: Bonfire!
Saturday, September 29 from 6 to 9:30pm
Fire pits at Shoreline Park (Shelter Island)

Join us for a fun outside gathering with your fellow RPCVs to enjoy the warmth of a bonfire at Shelter Island. You can find us under the Peace Corps flag at the fire pits across from the Silver Gate Yacht Club.

SDPCA will provide wood and light refreshments. Shelter Island hosts fabulous views and this event is family friendly. Bring a chair and some goodies to snack on. We look forward to seeing you there!

It's that time of year again to head to the hills! Join us the weekend of October 19-21 for our annual fall SDPCA Campout this time at beautiful Palomar Mountain State Park. We will spend two nights camping at a group site. Families welcome! We'll plan meals, hikes, etc., once we get a head count.

The campground is just a short 1.5 hour drive from San Diego, off Highway 76, up Highway S-6, then left on Highway S-7 at the junction near the mountaintop.

Join your fellow SDPCA members for in-person district office meetings with your elected Representative to advocate for Peace Corps. We met with Rep. Scott Peters’ office (52nd District) and Rep. Hunters’ office (50th District) in August and plan to meet with the offices of Susan Davis and Juan Vargas this fall. Stay tuned!

We would also like to introduce to you our NEW Area Advocacy Coordinators! They will be working as liaisons between the SDPCA and each representative's district office. **We are still looking for someone to be our Area Advocate Coordinator for the 50th District. If you are interested, please contact Danielle at advocacy@sdpca.org.**

District 49 - Angie Lehmann

District 50 - Vacant

District 51 - Kathleen MacLeod

District 52 - Stephanie Gaffney

District 53 - Christine Sheckler

Contact Danielle at advocacy@sdpca.org if you have any questions or if you are interested in attending your district's meeting. Then we can be sure to keep you posted about the meeting dates and details.

WE NEED YOU!! Our annual holiday party and SILENT AUCTION is Saturday December 8th and our Silent Auction committee is seeking your donations. It could be a treasure from your years of service or global travels that you are ready to pass on. We would love to have international items and will gladly pick them up from you. (Please note - this year, we will not be accepting donations at the event.)

Funds raised go to our International Support Fund for Peace Corps projects as well as our local service projects like cooking for Rachel's house, Ronald McDonald House, and Door of Faith Orphanage.

We will soon be sending out donation request letters to local restaurants and businesses. If you have a connection with a local business that you think may like to donate to our silent auction, please contact silent auction co-chairs Heather - hkboomer@gmail.com or call/text (619) 453-2725 or Lynne - glynne92024@yahoo.com or call/text (760) 402-1064.

SDPCA is now Linked In!

SDPCA now has a group on Linked In for our members to network professionally! The SDPCA Linked In group is for local Returned Peace Corps Volunteers who are open to networking about their current, future, or past careers.

To find our group, log into your LinkedIn account, find “Groups”, and then search for San Diego Peace Corps Association. If you have questions, please contact Sharon at sharonkennedya@gmail.com.